The Lost Twins

Chapter three

Giovanni's pov

The next morning dawned bright and early. I realized that I had slept in Alessandra's room the night before and it had been a habit since we were little. Alessandra and I always slept in the same room and no one had ever tried to change it until we were separated in foster care. I thought about the two years we were separated while we were in foster care, it was the worst two years of my life. Ali is my best friend as well as my twin sister and living without my other half was brutal. Ali is the only person who could calm me down, she has this magic when it comes to me and my anger. I don't know how she does it but she makes me feel better and the two years we were apart, I was the angriest I had ever been. I was always getting into fights either with the foster families I stayed with or my classmates or the teachers. It didn't matter, I was always fighting and in trouble. The only thing I had to look forward to was the monthly visit with Ali. Once a month, Ali and I got to see each other, it was the only bright day in my life then. We could talk on the phone but that was difficult because of Ali's selective mutism. But, the visits were hard too because they always ended. I never wanted those visits to end but they always did and it was so hard to say good-bye to my sister. Finally, after two years, we got to live together again and it was the happiest day in my life. I felt whole again with Ali by my side but there was always the fear that we would be separated again. It's why we never really unpacked, we always anticipated the leaving. 

Now, we're living with people who claim to be our brothers but I'm not entirely sure about that. I don't remember Mom ever saying anything about older brothers or our father. She always said that our dad died when we were babies but I don't even know if that's true anymore. I believed it when we were little but now I'm not so sure. All I know is that I don't want them to find out anything that happened before now, they would send us back to foster care if they ever knew what happened. Ali would freak if they knew, she and I don't want anyone's pity for what we've been through. It's our battle to fight together and it's no one's business but ours.

"Ali, Gio, wake up, it's time for breakfast," Antonio said,

 "Okay," I said.

 I turned and shook Ali until she woke up. I walked to my room and got dressed in jeans and a sweatshirt. I went back to the hallway and found Ali dressed and waiting for me. Ali and I walked downstairs to the dining room where we found most of our brothers waiting. Ali and I sat down as far from our brothers as we could. After a few minutes, Pietro and Matteo walked in, sat down and we started breakfast. It was quiet until Pietro broke the silence.

"Giovanni, Alessandra, you two will be starting school next week," Pietro said, 

"Okay," I said, "You're going to St. Grace's Academy and you'll go with Luke, Emilio, and Antonio," Pietro said,

 "But, we're in middle school and they're in high school," I said, 

"St. Grace's is a private school and it has grades preschool through twelfth so the triplets will be there with you," Pietro said, 

"Okay," I said, 

"The rules about school are simple, get good grades, do your homework before fun, and no fighting," Pietro said, 

"But, what if someone starts something with us?" I asked, 

"Walk away, find one of the triplets, and get a teacher," Pietro said,

 "No fighting means no fighting, Gio," Matteo said,

 "I know what it means but people still like to start things with me," I said, 

"Yes, and the triplets are going to keep an eye on you to make sure you're not fighting," Pietro said, 

"So, they can fight but I can't?" I asked,